Gathering information on changes in the Netherlands post crisis

Hi Anne-Lise and thanks for the question.

The Dutch Government have been quite helpful and have amassed all of their COVID information in one place; this link will take people straight there.  The Dutch Government department that is primarily concerned with COVID is the National Institute for Public Health
and the Environment Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, helpfully shortened to RIVM.  To try and answer your specific questions:

What are the current regulations for entering the Netherlands ?  It depends on where you are travelling from.  It's all summarised on the website; this link will take you straight there.

Have there been visa changes recently?  No.  That said, the Dutch Government department that deals with administering immigration (IND) has been affected with offices closing temporarily and many staff working from home; this has had an affect on the issuing of documentation and people being able to physically visit an IND office; they are currently only making appointments and/or dealing with peoples 1st residence permit application.

Is it easy to find work in the Netherlands following the crisis?  Most workplaces have re-opened.  Holland is always looking for qualified, experienced people.  If people learn the language, have relevant qualifications and experience and are willing to work hard, they will have no bother finding work.

How would you view the dutch healthcare system in light of the crisis?  I don't know anybody who suffered from COVID in the Netherlands.  That said, the Dutch Healthcare system is very different to other countries I've lived and worked in; I can understand why people may get frustrated by it.  From the Press, initially COVID seemed to be centred in 2 locations to the south and 1 place in the west, then it spread across the whole country.  The Dutch Government went to a lot of trouble to make sure things worked, transferring assets and staff from the military to bolster local healthcentres, even working across borders to neighbouring countries to seek and give help.  My own opinion is that it worked; although I did have a conversation on here with one Forum member who clearly thought it was not good enough; I hope he's OK today.

Has anything changed regarding universities and schools?  Dutch primary schools reopened for all on 8 June.  Social distancing rules do not apply to children under 12, but adults are expected to maintain this rule when with children not in their family group.  I think all Dutch University campuses closed back in March and will now not reopen until after the summer holiday (end of August).

How is the real estate market following the crisis?  Decent accommodation is always in short supply in the Netherlands; for this reason, it's always expensive and COVID doesn't seem to have changed this; for example, my daughter was recently offered a stupid amount of money for her house.

Has the cost of living changed because of the crisis in the Netherlands?  It's too early to expect official Government figures.  However, like many countries, in March people were panic buying, which resulted in shortages and prices going up as a consequence, it seems to have eased off now and I noticed nothing untoward the last time I was there (June 2020).

How about lifestyle? Have there been major changes in habits following the sanitary crisis? The Dutch are a very social country and family bonds are very strong; for this reason, sheltering and social distancing has affected many families, with people who needed to shelter being apart from their families for a long time, this is now being relaxed and social distancing now being the norm for all.

Hope this helps.

Cynic
Expat Team